2017 CWS: Top 10 plays

DURHAM, N.C. — USA Baseball released the Golden Spikes Award midseason watch list on Tuesday, moving closer to naming the top amateur baseball player in the country. Presented in partnership with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation, the 41st Golden Spikes Award will be presented on June 28 in Los Angeles.

The midseason watch list features 40 of the nation's top amateur players from the college ranks. The Golden Spikes Award Advisory Board will continue to maintain a rolling list of athletes, allowing players to play themselves into consideration for the award before announcing the semifinalists on May 21.

"We are excited to announce the forty players on the Golden Spikes Award midseason watch list," said Paul Seiler, USA Baseball's Executive Director and CEO. "These athletes have proven themselves worthy of consideration for this prestigious award through the eyes of the advisory board and from the overwhelming fan support through our nomination process."

Joey Bart (Jr., C, Georgia Tech), Blaine Knight (Jr., RHP, Arkansas) and Casey Mize (Jr., RHP, Auburn) have each earned a spot on the midseason watch list for the second straight year, joining two-time midseason watch list selections Luken Baker (Jr., 1B/DH, TCU) and Seth Beer (Jr., IF, Clemson). Baker and Beer were also recognized on the list as freshmen in 2016 with Beer ultimately being named a finalist for the award that year.

In total, 13 different NCAA conferences have at least one student-athlete on the list, including two NCAA Division II conferences in the Gulf South Conference and the Sunshine State Conference. The Southeastern Conference leads all conferences represented on the midseason watch list with nine athletes, while seven players represent both the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Pac-12 Conference.

The defending College World Series champions, Florida, leads all schools with three on the 2018 midseason watch list. Arizona State, Kentucky, NC State, Oregon State and Southern Mississippi all placed two on the list.

On Monday, May 21, USA Baseball will announce the semifinalists for the 2018 Golden Spikes Award. The list of semifinalists will then be sent to a voting body consisting of baseball media members, select professional baseball personnel, current USA Baseball staff and the 40 previous winners of the award, representing a group of more than 200 voters. As part of this selection process, all voters will be asked to choose three players from the list of semifinalists. On June 6, USA Baseball will announce the finalists, and voting for the winner will begin that same day.

Fan voting will once again be a part of the Golden Spikes Award in 2018. Beginning with the semifinalist announcement and continuing through the finalist round voting deadline, fans from across the country will be able to vote for their favorite player on GoldenSpikesAward.com.

The winner of the 41st Golden Spikes Award will be named on Thursday, June 28, at a presentation in Los Angeles. The finalists and their families will be honored at the Rod Dedeaux Foundation Award Dinner that evening at Jonathan Club in downtown Los Angeles.

USA Baseball has partnered with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation to host the Golden Spikes Award since 2013. The Foundation was formed to honor legendary USC and USA Baseball Olympic team coach, Rod Dedeaux, and supports youth baseball and softball programs in underserved communities throughout Southern California.